Topics in the Book of Proverbs

Money Matters

An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end. (20:21)

Whoever is greedy for unjust gain troubles his own household, but he who hates bribes will live. (15:27)

Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel. (20:17)

The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death. (21:6)

Generosity

Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine. (3:9–10)

One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered. (11:24–25)

A stingy man hastens after wealth and does not know that poverty will come upon him. (28:22)

Diligence/Slothfulness

A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. (10:4)

Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense. (12:11)

The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied. (13:4)

Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger. (19:15)

The sluggard does not plow in the autumn; he will seek at harvest and have nothing. (20:4)

Choosing Friends

Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm. (13:20)

Make no friendship with a man given to anger, nor go with a wrathful man, lest you learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare. (22:24–25)

Child Discipline

The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother . . . Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; he will give delight to your heart. (29:15, 17)

Self-control

Pleasure:
Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man; he who loves wine and oil will not be rich. (21:17)

Food/drink:
Be not among drunkards or among gluttonous eaters of meat, for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and slumber will clothe them with rags. (23:20–21)

Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaining? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who tarry long over wine; those who go to try mixed wine. Do not look at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup and goes down smoothly. In the end it bites like a serpent and stings like an adder. Your eyes will see strange things, and your heart utter perverse things. You will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea, like one who lies on the top of a mast. "They struck me," you will say, "but I was not hurt; they beat me, but I did not feel it. When shall I awake? I must have another drink." (23:29–35)

Immorality

Keep your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house, lest . . . at the end of your life you groan, when your flesh and body are consumed, and you say, "How I hated discipline, and my heart despised reproof! I did not listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my instructors.” (5:8, 11–13)

He who commits adultery lacks sense; he who does it destroys himself. Wounds and dishonor will he get, and his disgrace will not be wiped away. (6:32–33)

About the Author

Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth has touched the lives of millions of women through Revive Our Hearts and the True Woman movement, calling them to heart revival and biblical womanhood. Her love for Christ and His Word is infectious, and permeates her online outreaches, conference messages, books, and two daily nationally syndicated radio programs—Revive Our Hearts and Seeking Him.

She has authored nineteen books, including Lies Women Believe and the Truth that Sets Them Free, Seeking Him (coauthored), and Adorned: Living Out the Beauty of the Gospel Together. Her books have sold more than three million copies and are reaching the hearts of women around the world. Nancy and her husband, Robert, live in Michigan.